A Day At The Stadium
by PattiL61
Summary: CHAPTER 5 IS UP (8/18/02) STORY COMPLETE - The crews of the FDNY and NYPD spend the day together at Yankee Stadium
1. Default Chapter

I own none of the rights to the characters of Third Watch, or to the Yankees, their stadium, their franchise or anything. This is just for fun and in keeping with my love of the Yankees and Third Watch. Hope you enjoy and GO YANKEES!!!  
  
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A Day At The Stadium - Chapter 1  
  
It's a beautiful day for a ball game as the group from the NYPD and FDNY converge on Yankee Stadium with their families. There is laughter, teasing and awe. There is a big crowd today because the Yankees are taking on the Boston Red Sox in game one of a best-of-three home stand.  
  
"You know, I never get sick of coming to this place," said Jimmy Doherty to Kim as he looked around the massive stadium and then down at his son. He nudged Kim and laughed at the look on the Joey's face as he took in the enormity of the stadium for the first time. Joey stood with his mouth hanging open and his eyes wide, weighted down with his souvenirs, his ball glove, and his baseball cap.  
  
"Joey," Jimmy repeated to his son with a smile on his face and chuckle in his voice. "Buddy, let's go find our seats," he urged, putting away his camera after taking a picture of his son's face with the beautifully- manicured diamond behind him.  
  
"Okay," he finally agreed, finding his voice again. As they turned to follow the rest of the group, Joey looked down toward the Yankees' dugout and noticed Jason Giambi, Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada talking to some of the fans and signing autographs.  
  
"Dad! Dad!," Joey yelled, pulling on Jimmy's shirt. "Look! Can I go down and see if I can get an autograph? Can I - or just even get a better look at the guys?! Pleeease?!" Joey was jumping up and down. "I don't think they'll let us down in that section Joey. You have to have special tickets to get into that area. See the security guys?" Jimmy said, trying to see if he could spot any of the other Yankees around the field in a better position to get to.  
  
Sully was walking just in front of Jimmy, Joey and Kim and explaining the history of the "House That Ruth Built" to Tatiana who was smiling at the sparkle in her husband's eyes as he spoke of this place. She had heard his stories about him coming here with his Mom and Dad, but mostly with his Dad when he was growing up. Sully overheard what Joey was saying and looked around at the NYPD officers that worked overtime duty at the stadium for home games. He knew that Ty Davis and Bosco were working the detail today. He remembered that they were both bragging about the fact that they were going to be stationed very close to the Yankees' dugout, protecting the players in the event the crowd got out of hand during the game.  
  
"Hey Joey, come here," he said, motioning to Jimmy and Kim that he had spotted Bosco and Ty. Joey moved closer to Sully and he picked him up. He whispered something in Joey's ear and set the boy down again. Joey handed his things over to Sully, hanging onto his souvenir baseball, and with a big smile on his face, headed down toward the dugout. "Hey, take that smile off your face, Joey. Make it an Academy performance," advised Sully as Joey took off.  
  
"Where's he going?" asked Kim, worried about letting Joey get that far away from them by himself. She started to follow him, but Sully held her back.  
  
"It's okay Kim. I've got my eyes on him the whole time," he reassured her, with a smirk on his face. "What are you up to Sullivan?" asked Jimmy. "Just watch how it's done, Bucket Boy," Sully answered, shoving Joey's belongings at him. ~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
As Joey got nearer to the dugout, the very young security guard working that section put up a hand to stop him. "Whoa, little guy. You can't go down there unless you have tickets for this section. You'll have to go over to that side - see where all the people are? - and try to get an autograph over there. Sorry."  
  
"This is it," Joey thought to himself. "Better make it convincing."  
  
"But, I need to get down to my uncle," he said, showing some fear on his face and adding a little bit of a whine, as he tried to push past the guard.  
  
"Oh yeah? And just who is your uncle?" asked the young guard, having heard just about every excuse for people trying to get past him to where they didn't belong.  
  
"Right there," said Joey, crying a little. "That policeman is my uncle," he said, moving so that the guard would see the NYPD logo on his t-shirt he happened to be wearing today. "I got lost. I can't find my Mom and Dad and they told me that if I got lost I should go get my uncle because he would be working down on the field here today," he explained urgently. "Please," he said again, managing to make some tears.  
  
"I'll take you up to the security office and they'll find your parents for you," said the guard as he signaled to one of the other guards to come and take over his post while he brought Joey upstairs.  
  
"No!" shouted Joey, as he pulled away from the guard. "My Mom and Dad told me to never go with strangers. They said I should only go to police officers," he argued louder, beginning to cry again.  
  
Just then, Sully and Tatiana (who Sully had filled in on the plan) came up behind the boy and Sully said, "Hey, what's wrong? Are you bothering this kid?"  
  
"I got lost from my Mom and Dad and he won't let me get to my uncle that's working right there! He's a cop!" answered Joey proudly, trying to remain serious as he looked up at Sully and Tatiana.  
  
"Oh Sir, you must let this boy get to his family," said Tatiana, patting Joey on the head. "He must be so very frightened." Now a crowd was gathering and the guard was beginning to get a little flustered.  
  
"Which officer?" asked the guard looking toward the two police officers standing together down by the dugout.  
  
"Him," he said again, pointing at the officer on the left. "All right," said the guard, taking Joey by the hand and bringing him toward the dugout. Joey looked over his shoulder with a big grin on his face and Sully shook his head as if to say, "Don't blow it now kid."  
  
The guard walked up to the wall by the dugout and called over to the two officers. "Hey, Officer! I got somebody here that needs to see you," he said, pointing to Bosco. As Bosco was walking over to the wall, Joey managed to free his hand and climb over the wall.  
  
"Uncle Bosco!" he said, making himself cry as he ran and jumped into Bosco's arms.  
  
"What the.," said Bosco, trying not to drop the boy as he flew toward him through the air. Joey threw his arms around Bosco's neck and said in his ear, "It's me, Joey Doherty. Sully sent me over and said you could get me in to meet the Yankees!"  
  
"And I can't find Mom and Dad and they told me that you'd be working today, Uncle Bosco, and that if I got lost I should find you and you would take care of me until we found them," Joey said out loud, breathlessly and sobbing at Bosco.  
  
Bosco still had a confused look on his face as he looked past the guard to see Sully gesturing to go along with it.  
  
Bosco gave Sully his 'really annoyed' look and said, "Okay, Joey, calm down. It's okay. I'll find Mom and Dad for you."  
  
"Thanks," Bosco said to the guard. "I'll take him from here," said Bosco, shaking the guard's hand. "My cell phone's over here and I'll just call my brother and let him know that I have Joey with me. I'll bring him over to the NYPD office here in the stadium."  
  
"All right," said the guard heading off in the direction of Sully and Tatiana, who were now surrounded with Jimmy, Kim, Alex, Doc, Carlo and Faith.  
  
"You did the right thing, young man," said Tatiana as they all went toward their seats.  
  
TBC.. 


	2. Chapter 2

I own none of the rights to the characters of Third Watch, or to the Yankees, their stadium, their franchise or anything. This is just for fun and in keeping with my love of the Yankees and Third Watch. Hope you enjoy and - oh yeah - GO YANKEES!!!  
  
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A Day At The Stadium - Chapter 2  
  
Faith said, "Sully, I can't believe you did that. What's more, I can't believe that Bosco actually went along with it!"  
  
"Yeah - I guess he's got a personality after all," teased Sully, after which Faith promptly punched him in the arm. "Hey - don't be picking on my partner!" she kidded.  
  
Kim was standing there with her mouth hanging open. Jimmy looked at her, nudged her, and said, "Kimmy, what's the matter?"  
  
"Well, I was just wondering how in the world we're going to get Joey back? They're not gonna let us down there," she responded, looking over at her son in Bosco's arms.  
  
"I think the bigger question is, does Bosco know what to do with a kid?" Carlos joked, causing Kim some more alarm.  
  
"Well, I think it's safe to say that Bosco can't lose him because Joey won't be wandering too far away from that dugout," reasoned Faith.  
  
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Bosco put Joey down on the ground as Ty came over and rubbed the top of his head, "Hey, little man, how'd you get yourself down here?"  
  
"Sully sent him down here," Bosco said, clearly irritated. "He told the kid to call me 'Uncle Bosco' and say that he was lost from his Mom and Dad," he continued bitterly.  
  
Ty just laughed and shook his head, "I didn't know Sul had it in him to be deceptive."  
  
"Yeah, well now what am I supposed to do with him? I ain't no babysitter Davis," complained Bosco.  
  
"Bosco, don't sweat it. Just wander over toward the dugout and the players, get a couple to talk to the kid and then send him back up to Jimmy and Kim," Ty explained, looking up and waving at the group up in the stands.  
  
"Whatever!" Bosco said. He grabbed Joey's hand and said, "C'mon kid. Let's get this over with."  
  
"Well, who do we have here?" came a voice from the dugout behind Joey. It was one of the team's assistants. "This must be the new batboy we've been expecting. You're late. Well, you better get in here to the locker room and get your uniform on - just pick the one that fits you. It's almost game time so you better hustle up," he added, nodding to Bosco in thanks for bringing the boy over.  
  
Bosco was about to correct the guy but Ty grabbed his arm and signaled to him to let it go. Bosco just smirked and told Joey not to go anywhere but in the locker room and back out where he could keep an eye on him.  
  
Joey's eyes got wider and just about popped out of his head as the team assistant brought him into the locker room through the dugout. He passed the Manager, Joe Torre, who was standing there talking to the team owner, George Steinbrenner, and some other members of the franchise. Mr. Torre saw the look on Joey's face out of the corner of his eye and winked at him and tousled his hair as he walked by. Joey suddenly realized that the team assistant was saying something to him that sounded vaguely like instructions and that he better start listening.  
  
As he was getting his uniform on, Joey listened as the assistant was telling him about his duties. He nodded that he understood and was told to head back out toward the dugout because there was only a few minutes to game time.  
  
Joey thanked the assistant and headed back out the way he came in, passing some of the players that were coming in for last minute things before the game started. As he rounded the last corner, he collided with Jason Giambi and fell to the ground.   
  
"Hey, sorry about that," said Jason as he helped Joey up and brushed him off. "Hope I didn't hurt you. Hi. I'm Jason Giambi," he said as he held out his hand to shake with Joey.   
  
"Hey, Mr. Giambi," Joey started, but was interrupted by Jason. "You can call me Jason. Mr. Giambi is my Dad."  
  
"Okay, Jason. Thanks. I'm Joey Doherty. Have a great game today," said Joey. "Thanks, you too Joey," Jason said as he headed on his way.  
  
As he watched Jason walk away, he felt someone grab the new baseball cap off his head. He turned around to see Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada. Derek had his cap in his hand, shaping the brim, and said, "Hey, you gotta break in the brim like this."   
  
"Yeah," said Jorge. "Unless your gonna be a catcher, then you just wear it like this," he said as he grabbed the cap from Derek and placed it on Joey's head backwards.  
  
"Thanks," was all Joey could manage to say as the two players patted him on the back and walked away, talking and joking back and forth.  
  
"Dad is never gonna believe this!" thought Joey to himself. He walked back out into the dugout and looked around. Bosco caught site of him and gave him a 'thumbs-up' sign as he motioned for him to sit down in the dugout.  
  
He looked around for where he should sit and someone motioned for him to sit down on the bench next to him and another man. It was Don Zimmer and Mel Stottlemyer! "Man, this just keeps getting better and better!" he said out loud to himself. Both men laughed and moved over to make room for Joey to sit down.  
  
Just then, the music queued and the Yankees ran out of the dugout to take the field and crowd began to roar. Alfonso Soriano walked up to the plate and took a few practice swings while the Red Sox pitcher finished warming up. Derek Jeter was taking batting swings in the on deck circle and the Umpire yelled, "Play Ball!"  
  
As Soriano swung at the first pitch and started the Yankees off with a home run, Bosco pulled out his cell phone and punched in Faith's cell phone number as the crowd came to life.  
  
"Yokas!" Faith yelled over the noise, holding her hand over her other ear. "Yeah, it's me," said Bosco. "Give your phone to Doherty will ya?" he said. "Be nice, Bosco," Faith warned as she handed the phone over to Jimmy and said, "It's Bosco."  
  
"Hey Bos! Where do you want me to come get Joey?" Jimmy asked, standing to head down as soon as Bosco told him where to go.  
  
"You might want to take a look at the kid picking up Soriano's bat from alongside the first base line," said Bosco, chuckling.  
  
"Oh my God!" yelled Jimmy. "Kim, look at the batboy!" yelled Jimmy to Kim, handing her the binoculars he brought with him. "Bosco, you're the best! I don't care what Sully says about you," Jimmy exclaimed.  
  
"Bite me, Doherty. Just meet me at the NYPD office after the game," Bosco snorted into the phone before hanging up.  
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TBC - (if you think I should.) 


	3. Chapter 3

A Day At The Stadium - Chapter 3  
  
Joey was having a great time. Bosco got a kick out of watching him with the team and looked over at Davis to see him talking with Bernie Williams in the on deck circle.  
  
"Man, this is the life," he thought to himself as he looked up at the blue, cloudless sky, taking in the 73 degree, 0 humidity weather. "I could do this everyday."  
  
"Do what, Officer?" asked a female voice from behind him. He turned around to see Faith standing there along the wall next to the dugout.  
  
He smiled at her as he walked over to her. "I could handle this detail every day," he said. "I never got to come here with my Dad and this is just awesome."  
  
"What? You mean this is the first time you've ever been here!?" asked Faith, not realizing that he'd never seen a professional baseball game. She thought that living in New York City meant that attending a game at either Yankee Stadium or Shea Stadium were a natural course of events.  
  
"Never, and I gotta tell you it is truly awesome," he said as he looked around the stadium that was filled to a capacity crowd. "So, how did you get down here?" he asked her.  
  
"Hey, you're not the only one with a badge, Boscorelli," they both laughed.  
  
"So, how's Joey doing?" asked Faith.  
  
"I think he's having the time of his life," he smiled as he looked into the dugout at Joey, sitting next to Shane Spencer, a serious look on his face as Shane was explaining the finer points of hitting a baseball. "It's like he's been hanging around these guys for years," he finished.   
  
"Hey, Jimmy was wondering if you might be able to get a picture of Joey with the players in the dugout or something," she said holding out Jimmy's camera to Bosco.  
  
"Aw Faith, I don't wanna get involved with this," he said, taking a step back.  
  
"C'mon Bos," she pleaded. "Just one picture so that Joey will have something to look at and remember what a great day he had," she added, just as the third out was made and he needed to head back to his post in front of the dugout until the next inning started. She must have pulled at his heartstrings because he just made a face and grabbed the camera from her hand as he turned to leave. "I'll catch you after the game," he said as he nodded to Faith and walked off.  
  
"Okay, thanks Bosco. I'll bring Jimmy and Kim up to the NYPD office and maybe we can go get some dinner afterward," she offered. "Sounds like a plan," he responded, turning back to his duties.  
  
Faith made her way back up to her seat and let Jimmy and Kim know that Joey was fine and that she had given the camera to Bosco.  
  
"Man, Joey is NEVER gonna stop talking about this," said Kim with a big smile on his face. "What I did on my summer vacation essay written all over this," laughed Jimmy.  
  
And so the game went on and it soon came time for the 7th inning stretch. Bob Shepherd made the announcement, "Ladies and Gentlemen. Please join us in remembering those lost as a result of the terrible events of September 11, 2001 and our men and women in the armed services fighting the war against terrorism as we listen to Ronan Tynan's rendition of 'God Bless America.'"  
  
The crowd became silent as the flags and patriotic signs brought to the stadium by the fans were unfurled, caps were removed and hands were placed over hearts. The only sound heard was Ronan Tynan's beautiful voice accompanied by the audience singing along.  
  
Both teams had come out of their dugouts and stood in line with their caps covering their hearts, many with heads bowed, many looking at the American flag dancing in the light breeze felt at the stadium today.  
  
Bosco had forgotten about this part of the game. He stared at the Flag on the façade of centerfield. He couldn't help but see the horrible images of the destruction he had lived through and fought to escape from and from all the death and devastation of not only New York City, but of the Pentagon and the field in Pennsylvania where the brave men and women of Flight 93 had lost their lives while saving an unknown number of people by thwarting the flight of the terrorists to their final destination.  
  
Bosco had the tight feeling in his chest that he got whenever he thought about those terrible days and weeks immediately following the attacks when he noticed the feeling of someone looking at him. As the song finished, the crowd roared and players began to take their positions on the field, he turned to where he felt the stare coming from and saw Faith looking at him. She was the only one who knew exactly how affected by those events he was, the only one he had confided in and she had kept it to herself for him. He knew that he could talk to her about anything.  
  
Faith and Bosco held each other's gaze for a moment then Bosco nodded to her and went back to his duties as the crowd came back to life again.  
  
And so, the game went on into extra innings, with the Yankees holding off the Red Sox (of course). The fans began to filter out at the bottom of the 13th inning. The final score was Yankees 12, Red Sox 11 as Derek Jeter got hold of a fast ball, left up and in, off Pedro Martinez, resulting in a walk-off homerun, bringing in Jorge Posada, to win the game.  
  
Bosco and Ty waited outside the dugout as Joey cavorted with the team celebrating their victory. Joey was about to be swept into the locker room with the crowd and Bosco reached an arm in and grabbed him by the shoulder, hauling him out. The disappointment was evident on Joey's face as he whined, "Aw Bosco...."  
  
"That's Uncle Bosco to you," he joked. "C'mon, your Mom and Dad are waiting kiddo,"  
  
Joey turned back toward the dugout and yelled, "Hey guys, thanks a lot. I had a blast." After numerous hair tousles and pats on the back, Joey reluctantly turned and left with Ty and Bosco.  
  
"Earth to Joey," joked Ty. "Huh?" said Joey, looking up at Bosco and Ty.  
  
"Sorry you had such a crappy day, kid," Ty continued. The smile Joey was wearing throughout the entire game just widened as they walked toward the NYPD office.  
  
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Well, here's another chapter. I hope you enjoy it. TBC.... 


	4. Chapter 4

A Day At The Stadium - Chapter 4  
  
Kim, Jimmy and Faith were all waiting for Joey, Ty and Bosco at the NYPD office located within Yankee Stadium. Joey saw Kim and Jimmy and broke free from Bosco's grip and ran toward his parents. He was jumping around and talking a mile a minute when Davis and Bosco caught up to them.  
  
"Bosco," said Kim, putting her hand on his arm. "Thanks for playing along with that for Joey."  
  
He nodded, handed Jimmy back his camera, and looked around at the group. "Where's Sully?" asked Bosco. "Oh, uh, he said that he and Tatiana had to take off right after the game." said Faith before she was interrupted by Bosco. "Yeah, I'll bet he did. But don't worry, I'll get even," he said, half serious, but with a smirk on his face.  
  
Jimmy was checking to make sure that the camera was turned off so as not to waste the battery. "Bosco, this was a full roll of film and there's only two pictures left on it!" he said. "You better have taken a few pictures of Joey and not just the hot women sitting in the stands."  
  
"Relax Doherty," he said with a sneer. "They're all of Joey - and you're welcome."  
  
"Sorry, Bosco. And thanks," Jimmy replied. Bosco just nodded and turned his attention back to Faith. "Well, what about that drink you mentioned before? Anyone else interested?" he asked, looking around at the crowd.  
  
"I'm hungry," offered Joey. "You know, you can't get any hot dogs down in the dugout or anything!"  
  
"Yeah, well you ate so many sunflower seeds, they'll probably start growing out of your ears," Bosco said to Joey. Faith laughed as she thought that Bosco probably enjoyed taking care of Joey more than he realized. But then, he always did get along really well with Charlie and Emily. "I guess kids just get along good with other kids," she thought to herself.  
  
"Well, how about if we all head over to O'Brien's Sports Cafe," suggested Davis. "We can get both food and 'spirits' and they have all those TVs where we can catch the encore presentation of the game so Joey can maybe see himself on TV."  
  
"Can we, Mom, Dad? Please?!?!?" begged Joey. Kim looked at her watch and said, "Alright, but not too late. Just because you don't have school, doesn't mean we don't have to work tomorrow."  
  
"Look," Jimmy offered. "We'll head over to get a table and order some appetizers while you guys go by the station and get back into your street clothes."  
  
"Sounds good," said Bosco, turning to Faith. "You want to ride over with Kim and Jimmy, or do you want to ride back to the house with me and Davis and then over? Davis is gonna pick up Alex there too."  
  
Faith was debating whether or not to go. Since she and Fred had decided to end things, she felt like a third wheel around everyone lately. "You know, I think I'll just catch a ride back to the house with you and then I'm gonna head hom.... - I mean to my apartment - from there. I'm really beat," she said, looking at the crowd walking by instead of making eye contact with Bosco.  
  
Bosco looked at Faith and just nodded. He knew she had been having a hard time since she left Fred and he had primary custody of the kids for now because of his hours. But, it was for the best. He was great with the kids, but he had always treated her badly. She needed to find a way to deal with things and start enjoying life again. She was too young to just go home every night and sit by herself until the weekend when she had the kids.  
  
"Yeah, well we'll discuss it on the way back to the house," he said, putting an arm around her shoulder and heading out to the parking lot where Ty was waiting for them in his SUV. He was telling her how he had made Davis drive, telling him there was no way he was gonna park his perfect mustang next to some idiot that didn't care about whether or not he nicked the paint. As they walked along talking and kidding around, he felt the tension leave her shoulders as she started to relax and not think about how much she missed her kids for a little while.  
  
After Davis and Bosco had changed into their street clothes, they headed over to the firehouse to see if Alex was ready to go. Doc and Carlos were there, as well as DK and Walsh. They all ended up piling into both Davis' and Bosco's cars and heading over to O'Brien's. Davis called Sully and Tatiana and told them to meet everyone there.  
  
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It was about 7:00 when everyone got to O'Brien's and with the size of the crowd and the noise they were making, they'd just about taken over the place. They all ordered their food and rounds of drinks were being bought. The next round of drinks that Bosco had ordered came and he directed the waitress over to Sully for payment. "Watch this," he said to Faith, who was getting a little silly from one too many beers. Bosco chuckled at the look on her face and thought about how good it was to see her enjoying herself for a change.  
  
The waitress went to collect from Sully and when she had leaned over to tell Sully the total, he looked up at her puzzled. Sully must have questioned her and she had motioned in his direction while telling him that Bosco had told her that he was paying for this round.  
  
Sully gave him a dirty look then laughed as he handed her the money with a little extra for a tip. He looked at Bosco and shouted, "Well, I guess I deserved that!"  
  
"You bet you did Sullivan!" shouted Bosco back. Faith was laughing hysterically and leaning against Bosco, getting sillier by the minute. He looked at her and smiled, thinking that he should probably cut her off, but this was the first time she had actually had fun since her and Fred had split up. She deserved it. He decided he'd let her have a couple more and then make sure she got home okay. Besides, he was kind of enjoying this time with her. He tried to get some more food into her stomach in hopes that it would absorb some of the alcohol in her stomach.  
  
Jimmy, Kim and Joey finally headed out around 10:00, with Joey asleep in Jimmy's arms. After that, the party started to break up with everyone saying what a great day it was and they should definitely do it again as soon as everyone had the day off again - although that didn't happen very often.  
  
Bosco and Faith were the last to leave. As Bosco discreetly helped Faith maneuver out to his car without her realizing that she needed the help, he said, "So, you look like you had a good time today."  
  
"Yeah - thanks for 'making' me come out for dinner. It was fun," she said, with sadness to her voice as she realized she was going to be going back to her empty apartment. It was late so Fred probably wouldn't let her talk to the kids, not that she would make too much sense after her drinks tonight. She sure wasn't used to this, but it felt good to cut loose a little. And, she noticed that Bosco only had one beer, so she didn't have to worry about getting home.  
  
"Sorry, you didn't get to enjoy yourself so much tonight though," she said, looking up at him as she tripped over a hole in the sidewalk and he caught her. "Sure I did. What makes you think I didn't?" he asked her as they reached his car and he opened the door for her.  
  
"Well, I noticed you only had one beer tonight," she said. "Yeah, that's all I wanted though," he answered. "I enjoyed watching you have a good time for a change. You need to do that more often - probably not with the alcohol though 'cause you're gonna have one hell of a hangover in the morning," he laughed as he helped her into the car.  
  
As he handed her the seat belt and started to stand up and shut her door, she sat up quickly and kissed him on the cheek. "Thanks Bosco."  
  
Bosco smiled and said, "Anytime partner." With that he shut the door and walked around to his side of the car smiling, still feeling the warmth of her kiss on his cheek. "Get over it Boscorelli," he thought to himself. "There's no way.."  
  
Faith was asleep by the time Bosco pulled up alongside her building. "Faith!" he said loudly a third time, shaking her by the shoulder. "You're home, let's go. You're not gonna make me carry you up there are you?"  
  
Faith opened her eyes, "Huh, what? Oh, sorry. Guess I fell asleep," she said trying to shake herself awake. She looked at Bosco and said, "Thanks again for the ride. Be careful driving home." Bosco nodded and said, "Yeah, I'll see you at work tomorrow - and Faith, make sure you take some aspirin before you go to bed and put a big glass of water by the bed. Whenever you wake up during the night take a drink of the water - trust me, it'll help."  
  
Faith got out and walked over to her building. Just as she started to climb the stairs, Bosco noticed her slump toward the railing and hold on. He jumped out of the car and said, "Hey Faith - you okay?" as he walked over to her.  
  
"Yeah," she said, embarrassed. "I guess I really did drink a little too much."  
  
"Here, give me your keys. I'll help you get in and then I'll take off," he said taking the keys from her hand. "No Bos. It's okay, really. I'll be alright."  
  
"Faith, how many times have you dragged my sorry butt up three flights of stairs when I was trashed?" he said, dismissing her protests.  
  
As they reached her second floor apartment, Bosco put the key in the door, opened it and flipped on the light. He noticed that there were still unpacked boxes all over the place, even after three weeks. It looked pretty much like it looked the day he helped her move her stuff over. He noticed her bed was still unassembled and leaning against the hallway wall.  
  
"Have you been sleeping on your couch for three weeks Faith," he asked her. "Why didn't you tell me you couldn't get the bed put together. I would have done it for you."  
  
"It's not that I can't do it, Bos. It's just that.." she trailed off, her voice starting to crack. It had been so long since he had seen Faith drink, he forgot that she was a 'sad' drunk.  
  
"I know, Faith," Bosco said. "But you're doing the right thing. It WILL get better, I promise. Things will get settled, you'll work out a routine with Charlie and Em. I'll help you Faith. You know I will," he said, trying to console her.  
  
She had somewhat regained her composure - "Thank God," Bosco thought to himself, not knowing what to do if she started getting all emotional on him - and went into the kitchen to get a big glass of water and some aspirin like Bosco suggested. "I know, thanks," she said, embarrassed again. "You want something to drink? Some water and aspirin perhaps?"  
  
"Nah - just get your sheets and stuff out. I'm gonna put your bed together for you so you can get a good night's sleep. That's probably part of the problem, right?" he suggested to her.  
  
"You don't have to do that tonight, Bos. It's late. You need to get home and get some rest," said Faith, not wanting to put him to any trouble. "What's one more night on the couch?"  
  
Bosco looked at the second hand couch and back at Faith. "I wouldn't wish that thing on Sgt. Christopher!" he said, heading over to haul the bed frame and headboard into the bedroom. Faith smiled and looked around to find the box that had her linens in it.  
  
TBC. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Well, what do you think? Should I keep going? Darn you guys, I think you're turning me into a Bosco/Faith shipper!!!!! 


	5. Chapter 5 - Conclusion

A Day At The Stadium - Chapter 5 Conclusion  
  
Bosco put Faith's bed together and made up the bed with the sheets she had left on the dresser. He opened the window to let some of the unseasonably cool night air into the room. He sat down on the bed, leaning back on his elbows, listening to the music from the radio Faith had turned on out in the living room, and feeling the breeze across his face. He closed his eyes, only for a moment..  
  
Faith was just about done unpacking all of the boxes she had stacked in the living room and looked around with a satisfied look on her as her apartment began taking on the homey, lived-in look. She went into the kitchen, looked at the clock and saw that it was 3:00 a.m. She poured herself another glass of water and a soda for Bosco, realizing that she hadn't heard any tools clinking or any muffled swearing from him in the last few minutes. She walked to the back bedroom and stopped at the doorway, taking in the sleeping form of her partner stretched across her bed. She leaned against the doorframe and thought how lucky she was to have as good a friend as Bosco. "Sure he had his rough edges," she thought, "but how could you not love the guy."  
  
"What did I just say?" she said inwardly, not realizing she chuckled out loud. "Get a grip Faith. There's no way.."  
  
She noticed Bosco move out of the corner of her eye and looked over. "Wow, sorry Faith," he apologized, sitting up and stretching. "I didn't mean to zonk out on you. What time is it?" he said, getting up and moving over to the window to shut it.  
  
"You can leave it open. It feels good," said Faith. "It's about 3:15. Don't worry about it. I was just gonna introduce you as the throw pillow when I gave tours of the apartment to Better Homes and Gardens," she smiled. Bosco laughed, "Thanks. I don't think I've ever been referred to as a 'throw pillow' before."  
  
"I brought you a soda - thought you might be thirsty after the manual labor and all that swearing," she said, handing him the glass. "Thanks. You heard that huh? That was one tough bed, but I knew I could take it," he answered, drinking down the soda. "Well, I should probably take off. Enjoy, apparently it's pretty comfortable," he said, pointing to the bed and heading toward her to the hall.  
  
"You can just crash here tonight if you're too tired to drive home," she offered, following him up the hallway toward the front door. "I don't mind another night on the couch. I'm kind of used to it."  
  
"Nah, I'm okay. I just had a nap remember? Besides, I'm not the one that was inebriated earlier this evening. Although, from the looks of things," he said looking around at all the empty boxes, "you've recovered nicely. It's looking great Faith. You look like you're feeling a little better too," he said to her.  
  
"Yeah, I think it helped having someone here to talk to besides the television," she said quietly, not really wanting him to leave yet. But, she knew that they both had work tomorrow and he had already babysat for one kid today. "Thanks again," she said as she followed him over to the door and handed him his keys off the table. "Really, Bos, I had a great time today and tonight. Thanks for making me go."  
  
"Not a problem, Faith. I'll see you tomorrow," he said as they both stood there, a little awkward. He opened the door and nodded as he closed it behind him.  
  
On the other side of the door, in the hallway, Bosco stopped and thought to himself, "Wow, that was weird." He shook his head and headed home.  
  
Faith was still at the door to her apartment with her hand paused on the deadbolt and she was thinking to herself, "Wow, that was weird." She turned the deadbolt, checked the lock on the fire escape door and the windows, turned the lights out in the living room and headed back to her bedroom. She readied herself for bed, turned out the lights and fell sound asleep, the smell of Bosco's aftershave in her wafting up from her pillow.  
  
Bosco walked into his dark apartment, noticing for the first time what it was probably like for Faith when she went home at night - not being used to the emptiness like he was. He checked his machine for messages - none - and turned off the lights and headed back to bed. He lay on the bed, window open, staring out at the moonlight and thinking about the feelings he felt today when he was around Faith. He finally drifted off to sleep, still smelling her perfume on the shirt he was wearing at dinner.  
  
The End. Although this may be continued in another story.. Hope you enjoyed it. I think it's official - I'm a shipper. 


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